Babies born with flat heads on the rise in Texas

Babies born with 'flat-head' syndrome has risen dramatically in Texes and is expected to follow in other states.

Between 1999 and 2007, the number of cases of plagiocephaly — misshapen
areas in the skull that most commonly manifest as a flattening at the
back of the head — increased by more than nine-fold in the state, though experts believe it is not a cause for concern.

Dr Peter Langlois of the Texas Department of State Health Services and his colleagues reviewed entries in the state's official birth defects registry, looking for patterns.

Treatment: Babies can have special helmets fitted so that the shape of their skull grows in the same shape as the helmet

Corrective helmet: Babies with plagiocephaly wear the head gear for several months while their skulls are still soft to encourage correct growth

He believes that the change may just be because more cases of it are actually being recorded as more parents have started bringing their children to the hospital for treatment.

Research: Dr Peter Langlois has been investigating why the number of babies with flat heads has risen

Dr Langlois said: 'I'm pretty confident that the majority of what we're seeing is due to the Texas birth defects registry picking up kids with plagiocephaly better over time.'

He also noted that it was 'very possible' that other states are - or will be in the future - noticing similar increases in official cases of plagiocephaly.

Factors both before and after birth contribute to plagiocephaly. Crowding in the womb is a risk factor, for instance, with the problem being more common in twins and other multiples.

After birth, repetitive pressure on one area of an infant's head — from repeatedly sleeping in the same position, or spending too much time in swings or 'bouncy seats' — can lead to the syndrome.

Since paediatricians began recommending that infants be put to sleep on their backs to lower the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), studies have noted a rise in plagiocephaly.

To counter that, experts generally recommend that infants get plenty of supervised 'tummy time' when they are awake, and that parents avoid leaving them in carriers, swings or other seats for a prolonged period.

WHAT IS PLAGIOCEPHALY?

Plagiocephaly is a condition characterised by the flattening of one side of the skull causing it to have a 'diamond' or parallelogram shape,

Some babies are born with a flat head because of crowding in the womb (especially in the case of multiple births) or complications at birth. Others develop it later as the bones of the skull fuse.

Infants can also be fit with a special helmet they wear for a few months to help reshape the skull as it grows and with more parents opting for this method, this may be another reason why the rate has gone up so much, as they are only available at the hospital.

Reporting in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, he
and his team found that the official rates of plagiocephaly increased
from three cases for every 10,000 live births in 1999 to nearly 29 cases in
2007, an average increase of 21 per cent per year.

To find possible explanations, the researchers scanned multiple factors that might be related - rates of multiple births, demographics, severity of the condition, and age of diagnosis, for instance.

Dr Pedro Sanchez of the Children's Hospital Los Angeles, who did not participate in the study, agreed that the findings should not necessarily be worrying to parents.

Plagiocephaly is very common, he said, and most cases are not associated with any developmental issues in babies.

He said: 'Most of the kids have no problem with their development, and most of the kids have a very good outcome when they get treated.'